Value of alliance

By Ted Gover

Washington and Seoul's contentious multi-round talks on a new agreement for splitting the cost of keeping 28,500 U.S. troops in South Korea have led to unnecessary tensions between the two allies. While President Donald Trump's tough bargaining to protect the American taxpayer is right in spirit, the five-fold increase he asked of Seoul was an excessive opening bid that threatens the strength of the alliance and overlooks the strategic value of forward-deployed American forces on South Korean soil.

Taking into account the security challenges of Northeast Asia and the broader Indo-Pacific, the desire for improved deals must not override American defense needs in the region. As such, striking a balance between cost sharing arrangements and addressing U.S. national interests is vital amid the ongoing North Korea nuclear crisis and the growing U.S.-China rivalry.

The Trump administration's demand of a sharp rise in the amount that Seoul pays for U.S. troops ― an increase to $5 billion from the $923 million that was paid to Washington in 2018 ― has bred resentment in South Korea. A poll in 2019 indicates that South Koreans viewed this as too much and disapproved of agreeing to such a deal.

An important factor in Trump's negotiating position is his belief that U.S. allies are free riders and that they ought to pay more for the security benefits provided by the American military.

Spending 2.6 percent of GDP on defense each year, Seoul is no free rider. Additionally, since 2015 South Korea has made $13 billion in American arms purchases and paid over 90 percent of the cost to upgrade U.S. Army Garrison-Humphreys, the largest overseas American military base.

However, the president also believes that the U.S.-ROK alliance lacks reciprocity given that while Washington is required to come to the aid of Seoul in the event of an attack, Seoul is not obliged to do the same for Washington.

Yet, this ignores the fact that Seoul has fought shoulder-to-shoulder with Washington in every conflict since the Korean War as well as participating in anti-piracy operations off the Horn of Africa, contributing to U.S.-led peacekeeping operations worldwide and, most recently, sending a naval unit to support American patrols in the Strait of Hormuz.

Lastly, Washington's security alliance with Seoul provides another advantage that arguably overrides in value the relationship's perceived costs and burdens: South Korea's strategic geography. By hosting forward-deployed U.S. forces, South Korea contributes to the deterrence of hostile regional states and serves as a launching point for operations on the Korean peninsula and in the broader region.

Better deals should not come at the expense of overriding security objectives or the values that the American and South Korean peoples share as sister democracies and brothers-in-arms. South Korea and the United States are well served by their defense treaty which amounts to more than a mere commercial transaction.

Ted Gover (amberjack_shoal@yahoo.com

), Ph.D., writes on foreign policy and is director of the Tribal Administration Program at Claremont Graduate University.